1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a signature system which presents the information that the user is authenticated in receiving delivered goods, in a transaction with financial facilities, in various transactions with other users, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the Asian countries including Japan, people conventionally have the custom of writing their signatures accompanied by their own seals for authentication. For example, in Japan, a registered seal is used for an important transaction of real estate, etc., a banking seal is used for a transaction with a bank, and a receipt seal is used for reception of delivered goods. In the countries where there is no custom of using those seals in transactions, it is common to put a signature for agreement.
However, a signature can be forged by others, and only a professional appreciator can correctly identify the signature. In addition, a seal can be forged, and it is also necessary to ask a professional appreciator to identify a seal as in the case of a signature. Therefore, when a signature and a seal are illegally used, the receiver is the document cannot correctly identify them.
In addition, electronic transactions of these days which can be realized through a computer network cannot be accompanied by a signature or a seal. That is, it is furthermore difficult to confirm for a receiver of a document to authenticate a correspondent as the person described on the document, or to determine whether or not the document is an illegal copy.
A password is used to identify a user, who is a customer in a transaction, in the conventional ATM (automatic teller machine) in financial facilities (bank, etc.). However, when significant information such as a user's telephone number, a user's birthday, etc. is used as a password, it is possibly stored on other paper medium, etc., and therefore can be easily guessed and illegally used by the third party. In addition, when insignificant information such as a random number string, etc. is used as a password, it is difficult for a use to correctly remember for a long time. As a result, the user often records his or her password on a paper medium, etc. which can be illegally searched by others.
Furthermore, financial facilities store and manage passwords in a medium such as a master database, etc. to have a matching check on input passwords. Accordingly, there is the possibility that the medium is illegally accessed by the third party to abuse the passwords.